On Wednesday, BCTF president Jim Iker said teachers were still locked out.

“Today, I asked BCPSEA to confirm with the union that even though mediation has not yet commenced, BCPSEA will unilaterally extend its commitment to forego all lock out activities until further notice,” says Fassbender in a statement.

“I am once again asking the BCTF to lift their pickets and suspend all strike activity while we try to negotiate an agreement. Even though we are not yet in mediation, we need to get students back in the classroom and teachers back to work.”

The confusion lies in the fact that on Aug. 27 the BCPSEA put out a news release to say the lockout had been lifted but it did not send a formal letter to the BCTF, so technically, according to the BCTF, the lockout was still in place.

On Wednesday, Iker said the teachers would not be suspending their strike.